“This year we present the Adriatic Health Tourism Platform, which could be used, within the cohesion policy and regional development, to finance health tourism in new ways, especially from the EU funds. The proposal was sent during the discussion on co - hesion and regional policies in the next financial pe - riod, so that it may be taken into account during the formation of the “financial envelope” of the new EU budget period, spanning from 2021-2027.“
1. What can Croatia offer within new tourism trends?
From 10 to 12 October in Westin, we are presenting new projects and destinations, and in general we have to change the mentality that sun and sea are sufficient. Perhaps they used to be, but now there are modern technologies allowing us to provide the Silver Generation with excellent medical care and recovery while staying with us as tourists.
The resorts mentioned at the beginning, such as Pašman Rivijera, are the best way to take care of tourists in a satisfactory manner. Croatia cannot and should not afford mass tourism, where millions of people will use up resources for little money, thus irreversibly affecting its heritage. The novelties in our offer should include, among others, medical wellness and preventive healthcare programmes in hotel offerings, eco-grown foods, lifestyle medicine, digital technology and healthcare partnerships (telemedicine)…
2. Pašman Rivijera, a project presented during last year’s Forum (2017), will come to fruition and enable a EUR 500 million investment, which will make it the largest investment in Croatia. What will all be accomplished with these resources?
This will entail a transformation of an eight-kilometre stretch of the coastline. On an area of almost 300 hectares, a traditional tourist infrastructure will be created, while preserving green areas for rest and recreation, so that visitors can enjoy the pristine nature of the Adriatic coast. Mr. Jeff Blackard, from the investment company Blackard Global which will invest in the project, is well known for his resort projects, which provide a balanced and comfortable life, and for which our coast has the ideal preconditions.
Mr. Blackard will discuss all of this at the Forum itself. Pašman Rivijera will represent a complete offer for the year-round tourism we hope to achieve, focusing on the sustainability of the entire Adriatic karst environment , and which will be a model for the development of similar investments in the Adria region, as well as serve as excellent promotion of Croatia’s investment potential on a global scale.
3. Which investment opportunities will be presented at this year’s Forum?
The main question we are going to answer is how to take advantage of the existing potentials that we are still neglecting somewhat, partly because we are used to having clean air, water, a pleasant climate, beautiful landscapes... and we forget that many potential tourists live in smog, noise, concrete and stress every day. Organic food that many Croatians have in their own garden is a luxury in a large number of countries. Based on this, potential investors can achieve fantastic results, for which they would elsewhere have to invest significantly greater resources in order to achieve this type of quality.
Apart from Mr. Blackard, two wellknowns names from the international business scene are coming from the United States. That would be Rick Santorum, an American Congressman and Senator who was in the final race for the Republican candidate in the 2012 presidential elections, and is today the CNN political commentator and successful businessman; and Mr. John Raffetto, founder and director of the American company Ambassador Care, that has for more than 40 years in co-operation with the American insurance company, Medicaid, been working on improving the health and creating better living conditions for American retirees.
This year we are talking about a larger number of projects we will present, which merely confirms that we have encouraged some milieus, and even the State to define projects that remained unfinished for quite an extensive period of time.
4. How can the countries in the region encourage the development of health tourism?
This year we present the Adriatic Health Tourism Platform, which could be used, within the cohesion policy and regional development, to finance health tourism in new ways, especially from the EU funds. The proposal was sent during the discussion on cohesion and regional policies in the next financial period, so that it may be taken into account during the formation of the “financial envelope” of the new EU budget period, spanning from 2021-2027. One of the key goals is the strategic development of the Adriatic region as a health tourism destination by ensuring significant funding for health and tourism infrastructure as well as investment in new tourism projects. As a silver-friendly region, we are opening the possibility of the development of a new and extremely powerful niche and the arrival of new guests to smart tourist destinations that can “live”, and thereby provide employment, throughout the year.
The biggest breakthrough was made in the amount of funds that we specified as the resources to be used in that project. We propose that this be an amount of EUR 3.8 billion, as opposed to the previous approach, which for interregional cooperation and cohesion funds envisaged significantly smaller funds with which integrative processes in the less developed parts of the EU could not even take place. There are so many initiatives that are merely wishes. In Brussels, at the Commission for Regional Development, we presented the Deputy Commissioner, Mr. Aureli Cecilia and colleagues with a document that has elaborated “priority axes” and “specific goals”. This has all demonstrated our seriousness and firm intention to achieve such a joint approach in negotiating with the European Commission. The document was sent to all the premiers and ministers of health and tourism of the countries included in the Platform: Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, Italy and Albania. Various meetings were also held, including those with the ambassadors of the aforementioned countries to Croatia, as well as visits and talks with ministers in some of these countries. It must be highlighted that all of them showed a positive reaction.
The letters of support from relevant bodies and institutions are currently arriving, and we are involved in active talks with the highest state authorities for further development of the Platform and support. These days we have also received the full support of the Summit 100 Regional Association, which brings together over 100 of the most important companies from this region, all the way up to Macedonia. It is obvious that our initiative is getting more and more advocators in the government, as well as in non-governmental organizations and the private sector of the economy, which provides it with particular impetus, as we expect most of the investors from the private sector.
5. How can the forum’s topics affect the worrysome emigration statistics and the general lack of optimism we face on a daily basis?
Every investment brings with it the need for new workers and employees, opening up opportunities that are lacking here. Not only that: when new content appears in a certain area, residents are given the sign that their place is not neglected and that they can spend time there in the way they want. Change is good, it gives us the will to get going and do something new. I hope our Forum will once again show that decisive and significant progress can be made in Croatia and in the region. Even more important than the money from the EU that we advocate through the Platform and which would stimulate investment, is actually the decision, namely the stated strategic commitment to health tourism in its broad range of concepts and services, as one of the most important strategic directions we are taking.
The unification of the complex services we call health tourism also implies offering locally produced food, as well as the tradition and original setting, along with the Croatian parks that can certainly be experienced throughout the year. This is where year-round tourism comes in, which generates better paid jobs all year round, but also a whole range of services that are simply not needed in the cheap “sun and sea” tourism. This is a viable and realistic way to stop brain-drain, and to motivate the return of experts who will be needed in this new “industry”. Our activities are also very focused on the diaspora. This is why the Association of Croatian and American Professionals (ACAP), an association that has accomplished a lot since it was established 3-4 years ago, is a partner of the Forum. We, as Medicinska Grupa d.o.o., have helped medical tourism to “break through” into the focus of interest, so that they will also have their representatives at the Investment Forum. This way, we encourage our diaspora to “do business” in the homeland of their grandparents, which is significantly different from the previous approach in cooperation with the diaspora. Double taxation, the visa regime and the like, are areas where they can really help, which would ultimately lead to joint ventures and overall progress.
6. What are your expectations in terms of the possible benefits of this event for domestic health tourism?
Tourism and health professionals from the Adriatic region will present their offer - their health and tourism offer. In this aspect, we see a special opportunity for the representatives of our health and tourism capacities, who can find new business partners at the event itself. On the other hand, the Forum will present new investment projects whose realization will help this area to be branded as a year-round health and tourist Riviera.
We invite project owners and their consultants to take this opportunity to present themselves to the respectable business audience interested in investing in Croatia and the countries in the region. We also invite representatives of hotels and tourist centres to respond and not miss the opportunity to meet the “buyers”, the tour operators, who have not yet been operating in our market, but have shown an interest by coming here.
Just like last year, we expect concrete results, i.e. networking and possible new co-operation between those who have a project and those who are looking for a project. American businessmen confirmed they would come to the event, followed by representatives of Qatar and the Gulf States, Northern Europe etc. Mr. Rick Santorum, former senator and congressman, now a businessman and CNN commentator will hold a lecture, as will Dr. John Raffetto, owner and director of Ambassador Care Ltd., and co-founder of the American-Croatian joint venture American-Adriatic Health, oriented towards greenfield senior tourism projects in Croatia and the neighbouring countries.
We are also extremely honoured by Prof. Mladen Golubić Ph.D., who will lecture on new trends in “lifestyle medicine” as the medical director of the Centre for Lifestyle Medicine from the world-renowned Cleveland Clinic. Knowing the reputation of the Cleveland Clinic, we can expect Dr. Golubić to present the latest trends in lifestyle medicine on Friday, October 12 in the morning.
We have to emphasise the support the Platform received on the recent SUMMIT 100 held in Belgrade – an annual congress of regional associations that gathers 100 of the biggest region companies and leaders where they meet the government representatives of those countries, which was also the case this year.
The Platform received a unanimous support as a possible common direction for the development of the region, and in that sense, it will be presented by Summit 100 to leaders of the countries of the region.
Doctor Bura also emphasised that the required activities should be planned on the EU level to contribute to member states individually, but also to the global EU economy. The examples are encouraging the construction of new residential care homes for the elderly, financing educational programmes for SPA tourism, medical tourism and medical wellness personnel, development of gathering and processing related statistical data and the like. The area of application encompasses around 12% of the total EU surface, over 7000 kilometres of maritime coastline and 80 million people, which proves the extraordinary significance and potential of this Platform.